Ended In a Whisper
by artlessICTOAN
Summary: Fifteen one-word prompts exploring the relationship between Yodo and Chouchou, the good the bad and everything in-between. YodoChou, some humor, some angst, character study, implied/referenced child neglect, body image talk, anger management, pining, emotions are hard, implied sexual content (very very lightly implied)


Whoops I went and did another YodoChou thing, blame spell, she talked me into writing this though to be fair I returned the favour and.. well I just love these girls so I didn't need much of an excuse, just a series of one-word prompts I chose from a random word generator, not in chronological order or written with any particular rules/limits in mind, I just wanted to do some short snippets exploring their relationship a bit more! fuck why did this get so angsty in places what's wrong with me

(the title for this is really random and based on the song Whisper by The Dear Hunter, which is just.. the perfect yodo song to me? or at least my version of yodo)

Anyways, happy femslash feb, enjoy folks!

* * *

Camel

* * *

"Ok, no. Hell no. _No_ way am I getting on that thing."

Yodo turned to see an expression she wasn't used to seeing on Chouchou's face; dread. She glanced at the beast happily chewing on some cud, before turning back to her friend. "It's fine, he ain't gonna hurt you or anything," she said, when Chouchou just started rapidly shaking her head with her gold eyes wide as saucers and already taking some weary steps back, she just grinned and grabbed her hand before she could escape.

"C'mon, I know there's nothing in this desert that can faze my favourite girl, not when I've got her back!"

* * *

Scar

* * *

It wasn't the most obvious scars that bothered her. The ones that were long, jagged, rough and bumpy under her fingers; those were par for the course in their line of work and both girls saw them as something to be proud of, just physical evidence of another hard-won battle, another test of their abilities that they'd bested.

But Yodo had other scars, _older_ scars, barely visible except when caught under just the right light. The long-faded white patch of a grazed elbow, four fine scratch marks streaking across her shoulder, a barely-there dent in the skin of her forehead, feet that were always calloused and had soles so hard, that she could walk on sharp rocks without feeling a thing.

"Hey." Chouchou glanced up from her position rubbing at her love's feet – trying to count the myriad reminders of a life where shoes were a luxury – and stared into those calm pools of deepest green. "Don't worry so much, I've got you to help treat my wounds now."

* * *

Couple

* * *

There had never been much of a discussion between them about whether to keep their relationship quiet or not.

"Hey! What're ya looking at us like that for, huh? You got a problem mate? You should do, 'cause my girlfriend is flipping gorgeous, she could punch you into dust and you'd thank her for the pleasure!"

She grinned at the back of the red-faced man swiftly walking down the street, revelling in the stares they were attracting, she pulled her tiny, twig of a girlfriend higher in her arms and muffled her snickers into the crook of her neck.

"Yeah you better run! I love this girl!"

* * *

Buried

* * *

"So what're you looking for in a guy anyways? It seems like no one is ever gonna meet your standards."

A wide grin in response to a prank, a look that oozed effortless cool, a laugh that could shatter windows, a vibrant aura and wicked tongue, a determined set to the eyes when faced with a challenge, a soft smile for any animal lost and wary and afraid, an obscure song hummed on a cold, rainy afternoon, an energy that bordered on overbearing, a sense of justice that burned brighter than any flame could hope to match.

"I dunno, I guess I'll just know it when I see it."

* * *

Heritage

* * *

The first few times, she'd thought nothing of it.

"He's just so- so…"

In all honesty, she quite often forgot that there might be any kind of tension caused by comments like that.

"I bet my real dad is super strong and handsome and cool."

She might've gone on not noticing it, if auntie Temari hadn't scolded her for it when Yodo and her brothers last when back to Suna.

"Ugh, there's just no way we're rela- we…"

Yodo glanced away from the screen for a second – though not long enough for Chouchou to get in any good hits, her character was already darting away – "No way you're what?" she asked, tongue sticking out as she performed a particularly tricky combo.

"No way we're… Arghh, I'm sorry!"

Her friend was so thrown off by that comment, that she didn't even manage to block a basic strike, but she quickly regained her advantage. "Sorry for what?"

"You know… how I'm always saying stuff about my dad and how we can't be… related and… stuff like that."

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Yodo raising her brows, but she didn't particularly want to turn and look at her properly right now. She didn't want to see how much she'd inadvertently been hurting her best friend.

"And? So what if you do?" Yodo said, casually doing a spin-kick and toppling her fighter to the floor. "Wait…" she slammed the pause button and spun in her seat, glaring hard into the side of Chouchou's head, "this ain't 'bout me being adopted, is it?" The blond pushed her shoulder to get her to meet the green death-stare head on.

Damnit, she shouldn't have said anything at all. "I… kinda? I just know I say that stuff a lot and I didn't think that it might be upsetting you till auntie Tem said-"

"Ughh, what'd she do that for! Look," she poked her cheek with a sharp nail to keep Chouchou from looking away, "I don't care _what_ you say about your parents, but don't go thinkin' that you're gonna make me feel bad 'cause of some shitters I never knew – family's what you choose, not what you're given and if you wanna go choose yourself a new dad, then that's your business, but don't go treating me like I'm some fragile little kid who's gonna break down every time parents are mentioned, ok? I get enough of that from stupid adults, I don't need it from my friends too."

She didn't wait for a response, she just sat herself back as she was and grabbed her controller, though she was perhaps a little more violent than strictly necessary with her button presses.

And the way she pummelled Chouchou's avatar into the ground before she'd gained enough awareness to so much as look back at the screen.

"…Sorry, didn't mean to snap," she sighed when the blaring red 'lethality' had faded from the TV, "for the record though, I think uncle Cho's really great, maybe you should give 'im a break."

She let out a sigh of her own as she flicked her cursor around the character select screen.

"Yeah… I know."

* * *

Ferocious

* * *

She hated this, she hated _herself_ ; her first ever sleepover, with her best friend, they'd been so excited and had planned to get up to all sorts of trouble tonight, but their plans had been ruined ten minutes ago. And all because of a little bit of _weather!_

As the room flashed white for a split second, she pulled the pillow tighter over her ears in preparation for the coming thunder.

She was just so fucking pathetic and stupid and weak, weak, _weak_.

Chouchou's face held a kind of worry that she'd never expected from the confident, self-assured girl and she'd been fretting about what to do since Yodo had frozen mid-sentence at the first booming roar. This would've been so much easier if her brothers were here, they knew how to keep her calm, keep her grounded, maybe if she could just tell her friend what to do… but that would require a level of control that had fled her so fast she wondered if it had all been an elaborate illusion cooked up in her mind-

Suddenly strong arms were encircling her shoulders and Chouchou was holding her so tight she feared she might snap in half. When she pulled back a little – just enough to look her in the eyes – she was shocked to see tears shimmering on their surface and a shade of amber that burned straight through her fear.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you now, but one day, when I'm a super strong ninja, I'll be able to chase the storms away for you! Please, just wait till then."

From her expression, Yodo didn't doubt it.

* * *

Bead

* * *

It was always fascinating watching Chouchou train. Seeing her reshape her entire body, shifting seamlessly from a normal sized – though still annoyingly tall – form, to towering over buildings and trees… Sometimes she'd even lift her up as well, to stand on her shoulder, feeling the wind rip at her hair and breathing in the dizzy bliss of knowing that a single step and she'd be flying – and confident that Chouchou would always be ready to catch her.

But even simply observing her everyday physical conditioning was an awe-inspiring experience.

Anyone who thought that – just because she had a big belly and a decent layer of fat covering her arms and legs – she was unfit, had clearly never seen her hammering away at training dummies for hours on end, or throwing a punch hard enough to shatter bark and crack stone.

Yodo always loved watching her like this, focused and determined and gorgeous and if her eyes just _happened_ to linger on the beads of sweat caressing her curves, then who could blame her?

* * *

Flower

* * *

It wasn't surprising that Chouchou liked plants – she spent a lot of time with her aunt Ino, after all – but it _was_ surprising that she'd drop her 'cool, composed and chill' persona at the first sight of some colour in the sandy wastes.

"Wow, that thing's huge!"

She glanced up from her position crouched by a low shrub and eyed the spike rising up from the sand, flowers of purple, yellow and orange blooming across every inch of its surface. "Yeah, it's a pretty big one."

" _Pretty_ big? It's, like, a meter tall!" Chouchou said, wandering over to get a better look at the thing.

Yodo shrugged and went back to picking some of the bigger wild gourds and carefully cutting off lengths of the plant's stem.

The sound of coughing had her instinctively looking up in alarm, before she turned back to her task, bitten lip still not enough to stifle her snickers. By the time Chouchou had collected her breath and staggered back over, she was laughing out loud.

"Ugh! That was disgusting, damn, the smell hasn't stuck to my clothes, has it? Hey, quit laughing, you could've warned me!"

She was quickly shut up by a foot knocking her onto her side, but she still couldn't stop grinning. "Sorry girl, figured you'd know better than to just go right up and stick your face in the thing," she said, inwardly noting how fricking cute Chouchou looked when her cheeks were all puffed out like that.

Her glare only lasted a few seconds, before she snorted and dropped down beside her friend, discreetly sniffing at her dress.

"Relax, you smell fine."

A quick smile was shot in her direction, "Thanks," Chouchou sighed, staring forlornly back at the offending flower, "still though, it sucks that it stinks so bad, it's the first pretty thing we've seen since we got here."

Yodo scoffed as she snipped away one last long bit of stem. "No it isn't, you just ain't looking right, here," she chucked one of the fruits into her best friend's hands, "it's a wild gourd, don't eat it – things are bitter as piss and make you _proper_ sick – but the seeds are really nutritious, good if you're running low on rations; and look," she pulled a single stem from the pile she'd gathered and casually stuck it in her mouth, "you can chew the stems for water! They don't keep very well, but they can be a lifesaver if you're desperate."

Amber eyes blinked vacantly for a minute, before she grinned wide, threw her bitter apple up into the air and caught it. "You've got a really weird definition of what's 'pretty.' I like it."

* * *

Absent

* * *

Despite everything, despite her family and her many friends and all the distractions of work and training and simple everyday living; she felt the presence missing at her side more sharply than she'd ever thought she would.

Things were supposed to be perfect now, right? After years of pining over someone so oblivious it would've been hilarious if it wasn't so frustrating, years of pretending to herself that 'just friends' would ever be good enough, her friend had suddenly come to the realisation that her own feelings ran just as deep and had openly declared her desire for all the world to hear.

And she was happy – she _really_ was – actually being able to say she was Yodo's girlfriend, knowing that her feelings were no longer unrequited… it was like she'd stepped into a world that was brighter and more alive in every way, a world where a fleeting touch could speak volumes and a tiny shift in tone could set her whole body aflame.

But… that was all dependent on that cool, tiny, strong, stupid, badass of a dork that she'd fallen for.

And she wasn't here right now. And it killed her, for every second she was away.

There was a creak as a heavy weight settled beside her, she immediately leaned into it and took what comfort she could in the strong arm wrapping around her shoulders.

"Dad… does it ever get any easier?"

* * *

Hungry

* * *

Sometimes she hated it, hated that Yodo could eat and eat and _eat_ , but never put on any weight. It was stupid and petty, she knew that; her friend couldn't help it if her body didn't keep it on, she'd been too malnourished as a kid and knowing _that_ just made her feel even worse, for sometimes being jealous of her stick-thin figure.

And it wasn't like the people who hurled abuse in the street bothered her – they could all be happily discredited as pathetic losers with nothing better to do than pick on strangers for looking a little different – or the whispered giggling of kids in the academy – if they weren't even brave enough to say their comments to her face, then she wouldn't waste her precious thoughts on them.

But, sometimes, she did feel bad about her weight; Inojin's casual insults that were always said in jest, but cut just a _little_ too deep, her sensei's well-meaning, but patronising, worries about her stamina, the shop clerks who'd bluntly tell her that their store wasn't for her, had she tried somewhere else?

Of course everyone she cared about told her to ignore it, her mother, auntie Ino, Shikadai, Metal, Temari… even her dad – as much as he hated the reminders of his own childhood and knowing that his precious girl was going through the same hardships he had – would always tell her she was perfect in every way and she didn't have to change herself for _anyone_.

And that had helped when she was a kid whose confidence was like a leaking cup that only needed to be topped up every now and then.

But, every snide joke from a close friend at her expense, every magazine filled with women who looked nothing like her, every time she glanced in a mirror and wished she was just a _little_ bit slimmer, chipped away at that tiny crack until some days it felt like a gaping hole that would leak water faster than it could ever be filled.

Those were the days that she went until her stomach had turned to lead and she was so drained that even getting up felt difficult.

"Hey, Cho?"

She glanced to the doorway, where Yodo was standing awkwardly, with a bag of consommé crisps in one hand and a look of indecision on her face.

"I know you're feelin' low, but… could you please eat something? For me? I like seeing you happy and if food makes you happy, then I want you to eat. And fu- forget what anyone else thinks, they just don't wanna see how cool and funny and beautiful you are, 'cause then they'd have to accept how lame and boring and ugly they are."

Chouchou slowly dragged herself into a sitting position and held out her hand.

She suspected this wouldn't be the last time she'd have to be reminded of that, but at least her friend would always be there when she needed her.

* * *

Smooth

* * *

"Hey girl, you're so fine I forgot my own number, can I have yours?"

"…You've already _got_ my number, dorkus."

"Oh, shitting fudge, wait, no, lemme try again, I've got a better one, hey, stop laughing at me!"

* * *

Coincidental

* * *

She'd briefly considered stalking her target for a while, but… that had never been her style.

So she'd instead jumped off a rooftop as she passed by underneath and leapt onto her back with a battle cry to strike fear into the heart of everyone in a five-mile radius.

"Hey girl," Chouchou said coolly, flicking a teasing amber glance over her shoulder, "miss me much?"

Yodo grinned and shifted to better wrap her arms and legs around her girlfriend's body. "Duh, what am I s'posed to do in Suna without my best girl around? Nothing interesting's happening there, I got so bored I had to take the first foreign mission that came up!"

She was awkwardly grabbed by the hoodie and twisted around Chouchou's body, so that she could look into that gorgeous face, one russet eyebrow raised and a challenging smirk curving her lips.

"Oh? Is that what you're doing here then?"

"Yup."

Chouchou grinned and leaned in closer, golden eyes sparkling with amusement. "So, you just _happened_ to get a mission to Konoha?"

She snorted and leaned in to bite the tip of her girlfriend's nose, only breaking away to say, "I came all this way to see ya, shut up and kiss me already."

* * *

Procedure

* * *

It wasn't always predictable what would cause it, but, in the end, that didn't matter; what mattered was how they dealt with it.

"What the _fuck_ do you want huh?! What, you not gonna say something? You wanna fuckin' go, I'll rip your fuckin' tongue out, since you don't fucking want it! I'll fucking-"

Chouchou was quick to put herself between her friend and the random stranger who looked about five seconds from passing out from shock. She didn't try to touch Yodo – that would do the exact opposite of calming her down – and she didn't try to raise her voice above her either, but she did make sure she kept her directly in view, even as she spoke calmly to the stranger behind her.

"Get outta here."

The man bolted, Yodo looked like she was about to run after him, but Chouchou pointedly put herself in the way, always with a few feet's distance so that she could breath and so that she'd be better able to defend herself if things got ugly; it wouldn't be the first time things went that far.

"Hey girl, I know he made you angry, he's gone now though, there's no need to go after him," she held up her hands as she assessed her, "can you tell me what about him upset you?"

"H- he's, I, he-" Yodo screamed into her hands, as her words stumbled and her face was turning red.

She smiled as gently as she could and took a cautious step forwards. "Take your time girl, we've got all day, you just work out what you want to say."

Her friend was still agitated, still pacing in a tiny circle, fists clenching and unclenching at her sides and growls and hisses still escaping gritted teeth.

Chouchou's heart was beating a mile a minute; it was scary to see her get like this, so out-of-control and wrathful and _hurt_ – she always worried, about her friend, about hapless bystanders, about herself even – but experience and careful instruction from Yodo's family, had given her the tools she needed to be able to deescalate these situations.

Chouchou stood her ground and glared at anyone who gave them more than a passing glance, letting Yodo work out the mental block, she slowly started to work herself down from her rage, taking long, deep breaths and closing her eyes to block out the gawking strangers.

"Th-" she coughed and took another calming breath, "That man, 'e was following us. He was down the main street behind us and then he followed us down here and he was right behind us and- and he was walking fast and- an-" She growled again and dropped into a crouch, hugging her knees to her chest and squeezing her eyes tightly shut.

Chouchou carefully sat down beside her. "I get it, that's pretty scary, huh? Can I hug you?"

There was a long moment as Yodo deliberated, but she eventually sighed and nodded, already leaning heavily into her side. Chouchou hooked her arm firmly around her skinny shoulders.

They sat in quiet company, ignoring the stares of the people on the street, Yodo humming that old Suna lullaby that always soothed her mind, until she had finally pushed away the last of her anger; and after the anger, there always came guilt.

"Shit. Fucking _shit!_ Why the fuck did I do that? He wasn't a stalker, he was just some poor fucking rando who was probably in a rush to get home and I went fucking apeshit on him 'cause I'm a-"

She squeezed her tighter and let her hide her face in the crook of her neck. "Hey, hey it's ok, you got angry today, but you just gave him a bit of a scare, he's fine, _you're_ fine," she started to rock slightly as her friend started hiccupping and choking, "you wanna go back to Shika's house? Shinki and Araya should still be there and I bet auntie Tem will make us some hot chocolate."

Short, blond hair itched against her neck as Yodo nodded, before shakily pushing away and rubbing her jacket sleeve hastily against her eyes.

Chouchou sighed in relief as she tiredly stood up and held out a hand to her best friend.

Things could've gone a lot worse.

* * *

Father

* * *

Even though she knew they weren't biologically related, she honestly sometimes forgot that.

Not because they _looked_ particularly alike; they both had green eyes, but where Yodo's were more of a bright, jewel shade of teal, the Kazekage's were pale and milky and Yodo did tend to mimic her father's distinctive eye rings with her makeup, but that was usually red, or purple, not stark black, but something in their movements and posture was very similar, the way they stood with their backs straight and heads high – like they were entirely confident in themselves and their position in the world – and Yodo's death glare was very clearly learned from her father.

Though hers would probably never be quite as terrifying as his. Chouchou could only be grateful that that glare had never been turned on her.

"So, I understand you and Yodo are dating." The words sounded awkward coming from his mouth, even though he said them with the same calculated assurance he said everything. If one knew to listen, they could pick up on the ever-so-slight pause before 'dating', he'd likely had to have been coached in the correct terminology by his daughter.

She squared her shoulders a little more and met his stare head on – even though his eyes were a good foot below hers. "That's right."

There was a long stretch of nothing, not a word, not a frown, not even the slightest twitch of a finger.

"…That is good," he finally muttered, giving a single, sharp nod, "I will do what I can to make the long-distance aspect of your relationship less demanding for the both of you. And, if you ever need to ask for advice… please direct your inquiries to Temari."

* * *

Ashes

* * *

Nights like these, she wondered how she'd ever gotten so damn lucky.

How many tiny little changes might have meant she never got to experience this bliss? If she'd taken one wrong turn in an alley, if she'd been just a little too slow in dodging a knife, if she'd ignored a hunger pang for just a few hours more, if she'd never stepped in to save a poor boy too sweet to save himself, if she'd rejected the first true friends before they could hurt her, if she'd not escaped the families that would have had her changed and _domesticated_ … if she'd not opened herself up to the opportunity offered to her by a red-headed saviour, who'd seen in her something worth reaching out to, worth protecting…

How close had she come to becoming just another unknown tragedy, another statistic in one of her father's daily meetings, another worthless street rat, killed before she'd ever even thought she might one day amount to something?

Sometimes it scared her, thinking that anything, any single, tiny slip might have changed the entire course of her life, or of her future.

But, then she'd be lifted in strong, reassuring arms, she'd taste sweet, intoxicating lips, she'd be thrown onto a soft mattress and be smothered by touches gentle and firm and teasing and dedicated and she'd feel pure _love_ flowing through her entire body, so hot it burned away that girl who never was and she was still so overcome, that she had to pour that love into her partner in turn, had to release that emotion that both thrilled and terrified her, had to share that fire ignited by playful eyes of molten gold.

And, when the blaze had died down, with only the glowing embers that meant joy, peace, love, desire, confidence, need, support and everything that she would never be able to find the words for…

Yodo looked down at that girl she could've been and danced in her ashes.


End file.
